The Seven C's - Friday, April 12, 2019

I'm taking a look at the Seven C's (not the high seas) around Nashville this weekend. They are:

1. Cedar Creek Campground
2. Cumberland River
3. Corps of Engineers (COE)
4. Country music
5. Civil War
6. Cultural Landscape Foundation's "What's Out There Weekend?" in Nashville
7. City traffic

Today is a day of change for us. We're packing up the 5th wheel and moving 14 miles to another COE campground. Even though we made reservations months ago, we could not get a week in either campground, so we split the week between the two. It's nice because we could check out another COE park.

Cedar Creek Campground is on the Cumberland River. The road to this campground is quite narrow. 

We had a level site underneath a cherry tree in full bloom. The sites were spaced nicely, and we had a view of the river. Throughout the day, we could see a couple of great blue herons and an egret fishing close to shore.

Our site at Cedar Creek COE outside Nashville, TN.

Sunnie approves.

We were surprised to learn that tugs/barges go by on this river. The Cumberland River travels 687 miles from its headwaters in Lechter County, Kentucky, to Smithland, Kentucky, on the Ohio River. Over 300 miles of its course is through Tennessee.

The Army Corps of Engineers was instrumental in building dams and dredging the river to make the area navigable and has had a major influence on the Cumberland River since 1832. In "1825, increasing steamboat trade caused the Tennessee legislature to petition Congress for a survey of the Cumberland which was the main shipping route for middle Tennessee produce. Between 1832 and 1838 Congress appropriated $155,000 for river improvements, viewing the potential production from the coal fields of eastern Kentucky as justification for navigational improvements. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began clearing snags and constructing wing dams to deepen the channel." [Reference: Tennessee Encyclopedia. Click the link for more U.S. Army COE and Cumberland River history.]

We had a relaxing day in the park. In the evening, Bob took a walk around the campground. We had a magnificent sunset!

Evening falls.

Bob walking the campground. There is a great blue
heron in the water to the left of all the trees.

Sunset photo by Bob Alton (taken
while on his walk around the campground).

Sunset photo by Susan Alton (taken from
our campsite).

Here we are in Nashville, the country music capital of the United States, and neither one of us are country music fans. We learned a little about country music history when we were in Memphis, learning about the history of rock 'n' roll and soul music. They're all interrelated through the early roots of hillbilly music from the Appalachians, Gospel, and the blues. As I was looking up the history of country music, I stumbled upon an excellent blog about Nashville that will take you through the whole Nashville scene. The blogger is Amanda and her blog is Dangerous Business: a Travel Blog. Click on her blog link to read her take on Nashville's music history.

Bob's quest to immerse himself in Civil War history found him learning about the Battle of Nashville and the Stones River Battlefield 30 minutes away in Murfreesboro. You can reference his guest blog here.

When we planned our trip to Nashville, we learned The Cultural Landscape Foundation (tclf.org) would be holding one of their "What's Out There Weekends" in Nashville. After having gone to the TCLF weekend in San Antonio, we were delighted to learn we could attend their free tours in Nashville and planned our stay accordingly. For the next two days, we will be on six different tours with them.

One thing we do not like about Nashville is its traffic on I-40. Holy smokes, to stay on I-40 you have to change lanes left/right/left. In most of those places, you have less than a mile to move over. And everyone else is trying to change lanes too. This was some of the gnarliest traffic we have encountered on our trip to date. Come to think of it, when Susan Medlin and I made our trip to Washington, D.C. last October, Nashville's freeways proved to be quite stressful then as well. This city needs a complete redesign of I-40 through the downtown core area. Easier said than done, I'm sure.

That was my visit to the seven C's of Nashville. I hope you enjoyed the ride. Our six tours with The Cultural Landscape Foundation over the weekend include:

• Music Row
• Belmont Mansion
• The Hermitage
• Clover Bottom Mansion
• Tennessee State University
• Cheekwood Estate and Botanic Garden.

Stay tuned.

Casey Jones Village, Jackson, Tennessee - Monday, April 8, 2019

Today is scheduled to be a long driving day. We're moving from EZ Daze RV Park in Southaven, Mississippi, to Seven Points Army Corps of Engineers (COE) Campground at J. Percy Priest Lake outside Nashville.

As with any long driving day, we needed a stop to get out, stretch, and eat lunch. Bob loves railroad history, so we chose Casey Jones Village in Jackson, Tennessee as our stopping point. It's just a couple of blocks off of I-40 and there is some RV parking in a gravel lot.

In case you can't find it, look for
the red caboose on stilts.

We like the name of this route.

An old passenger car (used for storage).

The museum was supposed to open at 10:00 a.m. and we arrived at 11. The doors were locked. We peered in the front door but didn't see anyone there. Another couple came up who wanted to go in as well. We rattled the doors and started to walk away. Just then, a lady opened the door and apologized profusely. She had been working in her office and forgot to unlock the front door. She thought it had been awfully quiet in the museum.

We paid our admission and went into the theater to watch the movie about the fateful, frightful accident between a passenger train and a freight train which wasn't able to move all its cars off the main line of the track.

John Luther "Casey" Jones was born in Kentucky or Missouri, no one is exactly sure. He knew from a young age that he wanted to be an engineer for the railroad. At age 15, he ran away from home and went to work as a telegraph operator for the railroad. It wasn't long before he worked his way up to fireman.

Eventually, he did achieve his goal of becoming a railroad engineer. He worked in that capacity for many years with an excellent safety record as well as maintaining an on-time reputation. 

One day, he had a very demanding schedule for his passenger train and was running behind. His train was cranked up to 75 mph to make up time. He had almost made up time when his fateful accident occurred. 

He had no way of knowing that a freight train caboose and three cars were stuck on the mainline track because another train on the siding was broken down and couldn't move. He could not see the train on the track ahead. When he came around the corner and saw the train blocking the track, it was too late to come to a complete stop.

He slammed on the brakes, wheels screamed in protest. His fireman was instructed to jump out of the train, which he did. Casey Jones took that 75 mph train down to 35 mph before it crashed, but in order to do that, he had to stay in the engine. His train collided with the freight train cars. He was the only casualty. That day, Casey Jones became a hero by saving the lives of everyone on his passenger train. Fireman Webb was so appreciative, he made sure to tell everyone about how heroic Casey Jones had been.

An artist's rendering of the horrible accident.

Casey Jones has been memorialized in song, newspaper and magazine articles, in this museum, in artwork, and with many train-related memorabilia. 

Train engines Casey Jones drove.

The museum is not limited to the story of Casey Jones. There is a great exhibit on "Railroads and the Civil War in Tennessee." Bob and I enjoyed reading the strategies and stories related to the Union taking control of the railroad. That helped the Union win the war by cutting off supply lines for ammunition, weapons, food, and troops. A lot of the railroad lines were also destroyed. 

We went outside to climb aboard the train. The Jones' house (where he was living before he died) was moved to this site and you can tour that as well. 

Bob entering the Jones' house.

After the museum, we were going to eat at The Old County Store & Restaurant. We went inside and looked around, decided we didn't want a buffet or deep-fried food, and we walked over to eat at Waffle House instead. Good choice. We were very happy with our meal.

Around 5:00 p.m., we arrived at Seven Points COE campground. I had picked Site 12 as it was one of the only sites left when I booked. One-and-a-half hours and six people later, another camper finally finagled our 5th wheel into our site. The site was huge (110' long); however, the photo of the site online did not show the ditches, and low rock walls on both sides of our driveway and the site across from us where we had to try to maneuver our 5th wheel. Also, the road was narrow and the edges of the road were not "feathered" gently to allow turning. There was a drop-off on both sides of the park road. It was not fun! If you have a combination of truck and trailer with a long turn radius, do NOT try to put your trailer in this site unless they fix the entry area to it!!

By the time our 5th wheel was on the site, it was almost dark. The end of the day was very stressful. I can now understand why no one had booked that site.

The park is quite beautiful, though, so we were happy for all the trees and space. We could finally relax. And that is all for today.

Canyon Lake Sunday and Chillin' on Monday - Mon., June 30

As with any vacation it takes a couple of days to decompress and get back into the normal rhythm of life. Friday, I spent time organizing photos and unpacking, plus I wrote one blog.

Saturday, I was able to write three blogs. We took a quick drive out to Random and then drove back home.

Yesterday (Sunday), Bob wanted to go for a drive. We packed up some snacks and water and headed to Canyon Lake. We wanted to take a look at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers campgrounds. Our route took us up I-35 north from San Antonio to FM 306 out of New Braunfels to Canyon Lake Dam.

The dam at Canyon Lake

Overlook Park (overlooking the dam and lake)

A beautiful doe enjoying the green grass.

From Overlook Park, we tried to drive through two Corps of Engineers campgrounds; however it wasn't to be. The lady was very unfriendly at the first campground's gate (first time we've had that experience). We were told no drive-throughs of the campground except Monday through Thursday. That doesn't work too well for us because we work in San Antonio during the week. So, scratch that idea.

We continued on FM306 to US 281 north and decided to check out Blanco State Park. What a lovely location along the Blanco River. When I went to show our Texas State Park pass to the ranger station, I found out it had expired in May. Oops. Immediately bought a new one because we love to go to Texas state parks!

Blanco State Park is known for its swimming holes and fishing. The river is stocked with trout and many people were enjoying the day fishing. Those that weren't fishing were swimming and picnicking. We spent a few minutes in the bird blind to see what fauna were around midday.

Rock squirrel

Harvestman (AKA daddy long legs)

Juvenile male cardinal?

Sparrow, type unknown.

Blanco River

Blanco River

Bob testing water temp, says it's warm.

On our way home, we stopped at H-E-B for fresh peaches and visited the deli. I had a turkey croissant sandwich and Bob chose a salad.

We had fun exploring today and will probably return to Blanco State Park to swim. It wasn't nearly as crowded as some of the swimming holes we've been to. There were actually lots of parking spaces left.

Today, I'm chillin' in the air-conditioned 5th wheel.

Have a good week everyone.

Travel Bug out.

Army Corps of Engineers Park -- Thurs., Aug. 30

Driving, driving, driving--not much stopping--all the way from Edmond, Oklahoma to Waco, Texas. Check-out time from Arcadia Lake Campground was 5:00 p.m., we left at noon. 

We had planned to stop at Turner Falls Park in Davis, Oklahoma on our journey south; however admission to the park is $12 per person/per day. If we opted to camp there, it would be an additional $12 per night. We read a review on tripadvisor.com from August 2012 saying the water level in the park is low because of the drought.  

Bob and I discussed the stop at Turner Falls and decided instead to take a separate long weekend to Davis, OK and camp somewhere other than Turner Falls. We can unhook "The Beast" and drive it to the waterfalls in the area, swim, hike and explore from a different campground.

The driving was pretty easy heading south on I-35. We arrived at our next campsite, Army Corps of Engineers Airport Park Campground on Waco Lake. We thought we had died and gone to heaven. Our back-in site, #60, had lake views on two sides. The site is electric and water only, but there is a dump station in the park. Some sites had sewer, however they were $4 more per night and we had dumped our black tank last night so no need.

When we arrived, the sun was setting over the lake out our back window. On the dining room side of our 5er, the full moon was rising over the lake. Absolutely gorgeous. The site was 65' long...plenty of room for The Beast, Rigamarole and there was separate parking in our site for four other cars! We had a covered picnic area with picnic table and two beaches to choose from. 

Sunset over Waco Lake, COE Airport Park, Site #60.

Moon rise over Waco Lake, COE Airport Park, Waco, TX

Here's Rigamarole basking in the sunset.

This was our first time at an Army COE park, but it won't be our last. We liked it so much, we decided we will be back for a long weekend (or a week) and will request site #60. We are not finished exploring Waco yet! 

This is called Airport Park for a reason--the Waco airport is about a mile away. During the day, you could hear jets from time to time, but not so much at night.

For dinner, I grilled tilapia with cumin seed and garlic powder, and we had a large green salad.

Animal sightings at Airport Park: 12 deer, one roadrunner, lots of great blue herons.

This particular COE Park has gates that close at 10:00 p.m. and re-open at 6:00 a.m. We were happy to spend the evening in our site. In fact, we were so in love with the site we thought, on the off chance the park wasn't completely full for Labor Day weekend, maybe we could get another night. We decided to ask on Friday if any sites were available. Check-out time at this park is 2:00 p.m. For Friday, we made plans to do the Volkswalk in Waco, Texas early in the morning.

Great evening.

Travel Bug out.